“I am Ashamed.”

Retired Army Lieutenant Colonel Ralph Peters has been a Fox News “strategic analyst” for over a decade, but quit Tuesday with an email that denounces the conservative cable news outlet in stunningly stark terms.

“Four decades ago,” Peters wrote, “I swore to ‘support and defend the Constitution'”. Peters then went on to state that, “I feel that Fox News is assaulting our constitutional order and the rule of law, while fostering corrosive and unjustified paranoia among viewers.” Saying he was for a long time proud of his association with the network, Peters said, “Now, I am ashamed.”

“Fox has degenerated from providing a legitimate and much-needed outlet for conservative voices to a mere propaganda machine for a destructive and ethically ruinous administration,” Peters also wrote. He described in lurid terms the scaremongering and denialism of empirical evidence typical of most of Fox’s “news” programming. Calling attacks on the FBI, the Justice Department, and the Intelligence agencies “profoundly dishonest”, he lauded Special Counsel Robert Mueller as “a model public servant and genuine war hero”. And he disparaged “prime-time hosts–who have never served our country in any capacity” who have the gall to attack the public servants in our system of justice to protect President Trump from the investigations into allegations of treason, obstruction of justice, and corruption.

“Russian Dressing”

With a mild dig at former President Obama, of whom Peters was no fan, the retired Lt. Col. lets loose on Fox’s hosts again, saying, “hosts who made their reputations as super-patriots and who, justifiably, savaged President Obama for his duplicitous folly with Putin, now advance Putin’s agenda by making light of Russian penetration of our elections and the Trump campaign.” he then shreds the network’s “increasingly pathetic denials” on behalf of Trump and those who surround him, noting that “it turns out that the ‘nothing-burger’ has been covered with Russian dressing all along.”

In closing, he takes one last dig at President Trump and the “propaganda machine” known as Fox “News” which made it clear what a bunch of traitors he clearly considers them, by signing off with the Russian phrase, “das vidanya”.

But really, to get the full effect, you just have to read it yourself:

On March 1st, I informed Fox that I would not renew my contract. The purpose of this message to all of you is twofold:

First, I must thank each of you for the cooperation and support you’ve shown me over the years. Those working off-camera, the bookers and producers, don’t often get the recognition you deserve, but I want you to know that I have always appreciated the challenges you face and the skill with which you master them.

Second, I feel compelled to explain why I have to leave. Four decades ago, I took an oath as a newly commissioned officer. I swore to “support and defend the Constitution,” and that oath did not expire when I took off my uniform. Today, I feel that Fox News is assaulting our constitutional order and the rule of law, while fostering corrosive and unjustified paranoia among viewers. Over my decade with Fox, I long was proud of the association. Now I am ashamed.

In my view, Fox has degenerated from providing a legitimate and much-needed outlet for conservative voices to a mere propaganda machine for a destructive and ethically ruinous administration. When prime-time hosts–who have never served our country in any capacity–dismiss facts and empirical reality to launch profoundly dishonest assaults on the FBI, the Justice Department, the courts, the intelligence community (in which I served) and, not least, a model public servant and genuine war hero such as Robert Mueller–all the while scaremongering with lurid warnings of “deep-state” machinations– I cannot be part of the same organization, even at a remove. To me, Fox News is now wittingly harming our system of government for profit.

As a Russia analyst for many years, it also has appalled me that hosts who made their reputations as super-patriots and who, justifiably, savaged President Obama for his duplicitous folly with Putin, now advance Putin’s agenda by making light of Russian penetration of our elections and the Trump campaign. Despite increasingly pathetic denials, it turns out that the “nothing-burger” has been covered with Russian dressing all along. And by the way: As an intelligence professional, I can tell you that the Steele dossier rings true–that’s how the Russians do things.. The result is that we have an American president who is terrified of his counterpart in Moscow.

I do not apply the above criticisms in full to Fox Business, where numerous hosts retain a respect for facts and maintain a measure of integrity (nor is every host at Fox News a propaganda mouthpiece–some have shown courage). I have enjoyed and valued my relationship with Fox Business, and I will miss a number of hosts and staff members. You’re the grown-ups.

Also, I deeply respect the hard-news reporters at Fox, who continue to do their best as talented professionals in a poisoned environment. These are some of the best men and women in the business..

So, to all of you: Thanks, and, as our president’s favorite world leader would say, “Das vidanya.”

Wow. But then, I’ve been saying it for years. Fox “News” is NOT news. But now you’re hearing it from an eye witness. So, all you Fox friends out there, how about you do your patriotic duty, and change the channel?

PS: It’s not like Peters has always been so critical of Fox’s fear mongering…